We guarantee that the price we give you over the phone or you see on this site, will be the price that you will pay.

How Long Does It Take to Get Cremated After Death?

The most common questions families ask us are:

How do you arrange for a cremation?

How long does it take to get cremated after death?

How soon after the cremation will I receive the cremated remains?

To answer these questions, we’ve created a procedural timeline that will give you an idea of what you can expect over the next two weeks. To eliminate confusion, rather than using days of the week — Monday, Tuesday — we refer to days as “Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, etc.” to outline the arrangement and cremation procedure so you can tailor your schedule accordingly.

Keep in mind that our timeline describes the “average” direct cremation and it does so in VERY general terms. Same day service is available (for a higher fee by both Metropolitan Funeral Service and the crematory) for families with special circumstances. Travel arrangements and religious requirements are two common examples why people request a same day cremation. Always remember that we’re here to serve YOUR needs and we will do whatever is legally and humanly possible to accommodate your special service requirements!

Day to Day Outline of How to Arrange for Cremation

Notify Metropolitan Funeral Service of the death

Call 1-800-332-1880 at any time, 24/7/365. If we are not physically in our office at the time of your call, our answering service will contact us and we will return your call within 15 minutes. Be prepared to give us basic information at this time. We will ask the full name of the decedent, the place and date of death, and your name, address, telephone number and your relationship to the deceased.

We will ask your verbal permission to transfer the remains from the place of death to our funeral home and we will schedule an appointment for you to come to our office to finalize the cremation authorizations, the purchase agreement, and for you to make payment. If you want to identify the remains during the arrangement conference, please advise us of your request during your initial call to our funeral home.

On Day One, we strongly suggest you speak to your attorney, accountant or financial adviser to determine the number of death certificates you’ll want us to obtain for you from the Health Department.

The Arrangement Conference

Be prepared to provide vital statistical information required for the certificate of death. You can find this information on our Information We’ll Need page. We will present you with a copy of our firm’s General Price List, review all of our professional fees and offer you the opportunity to review our urn and acknowledgement card catalogs.

We’ll also ask you if the decedent had a pacemaker or any other implanted radioactive devices (if you answer “Yes”, these devices MUST be removed prior to cremation – there is NO CHARGE for this).

How many certified copies of the certificate of death will you want us to secure from the Department of Health? You will need certified copies to settle the decedent’s estate.

If you want the decedent cremated with a special item(s) — a stuffed animal, a bouquet of flowers, photographs, letters, a pillow or a favorite book for example — please bring these with you to the arrangement conference.

After the cremation authorizations and purchase agreement have been signed, we will ask you for payment. You can pay for our services by personal check, cash or major credit card. The entire arrangement process will take about 1 to 1.5 hours of your time.

Metropolitan Prepares and Files Necessary Documents

After you’ve left the funeral home, we place the remains in the cardboard alternative container.

We report the death to the Office of Chief Medical Examiner and await their approval of the cremation. This generally takes 1-2 hours. While we’re waiting for the Medical Examiner’s approval, we complete and sign the original certificate of death, a cremation permit, and a transcript order form. These items are required by the New York City Department of Health.

After the Medical Examiner provides a cremation approval number, we file the original death certificate, a check for the death certificates, the cremation permit, a cremation affidavit and the transcript order form with the Department of Health located on Worth Street in Manhattan.

Metropolitan to Crematory

The alternative container that contains the remains is placed in our service vehicle and the body is transported to the crematory for cremation.

Barring any problems with the Department of Health, the death certificates can be claimed at our office at this time or we can mail them to you or your attorney.

Claim Cremated Remains at Metropolitan Funeral Service

You or your authorized representative can claim the cremated remains at Metropolitan Funeral Service.

The person receiving the cremated remains will be required to sign a release receipt before the cremated remains leave our facility. If you ordered special printed material — acknowledgement or memorial cards — they may also be claimed at this time.